Cross Game of Thrones with Terry Goodkind, and you get the Falling Kingdoms series. The mixture of royal intrigue, v for power, and ruthless murders combined with the magic and fantasy of the Watchers, their Sanctuary, the elementia and the Kindred produces a thoroughly enjoyable read. I can't speak highly enough of this series. I devoured the first book, and was worried that book two would fall short. Thankfully, Rebel Spring was as beautifully crafted and gripping as the first book in the Falling Kingdoms series.
Auranos, Limeros and Paelsia are now reluctantly united as a single kingdom, Mytica, whose ruler, King Gaius, is only predictable in his cruelty and heartless disregard for anyone except himself. His son, Magnus, wrestles internally with his choices, and that makes him a likable character, even when his actions are reprehensible. Cleo finds herself a prisoner in her own castle, although to the unwitting public, she is being treated honorably by Gaius. Jonas is still determined to free his people and sees Cleo as someone who might be able to help with that, and Lucia, Magnus' adopted sister, is a key component in the desires of all of the others. For middle school fantasy lovers (grade 7 and 8) I can't recommend the series highly enough. 

This is the second book in The Testing series and while I really appreciate that it begins with very little "review" of book one, it does mean that those who don't remember the first book clearly, need a reread before they commence the sequel.
Cia has no idea who she can trust and who she can't and that contributes significantly to the tension in the story. She has a recording of what she wants to remember about the Testing, but there are unanswered questions that cause her extreme distress. She continues to be a strong, intelligent, resourceful character who encounters adversaries and obstacles everywhere.
I enjoyed reading about her Induction (hazing on steroids) into Government. I felt it had a similar feeling to the Testing without being repetitive. There is a bit of a cliffhanger to the book, but I didn't think it was all that dramatic. I will definitely be stocking book 3 on our library shelves. As I mentioned in my review of book 1, I really feel that for Hunger Games fans (the real readers - not the ones who jumped on the wagon after the movies), this series is a great choice. It's a much harder read though imho due to the intrigue and politics and number of cha.